


August Moon's Surrender

by Lxck



Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Beverly Marsh Smokes, Everyone wants to kiss Eddie Kaspbrak, Fluff, Implied Eventual Poly Losers, Kissing Games, M/M, Multi, Richie Tozier Smokes, So almost everyone kisses Eddie Kaspbrak, Teenage Fluff, Teenage Shenanigans, richie is hopelessly in love with eddie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-02
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:35:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26105056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lxck/pseuds/Lxck
Summary: "The Barrens weren't Never-Never Land and they couldn't be the Wild Boys for more than a few hours at a stretch."While the Losers are reminiscing about the games they played in the Barrens as children, Bev and Richie suggest a new kind of game fitting for a group of hormonal teenagers who all secretly want to kiss each other.
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Comments: 4
Kudos: 55
Collections: Labor Day Book Quote Challenge (2020)





	August Moon's Surrender

**Author's Note:**

> Part of Bimmy's and Kitchy's Labor Day Challenge.

###  “August Moon’s Surrender”

The barrens. For everything they could be, the name never held up to what they really were. Barren meant void of anything. A barren wasteland, as Richie would call it after a few drinks and thought he was being deep. Mike would then chime in about why they were called the Barrens, something about a fire that had happened long ago that left the entire forest leveled and nothing but a smoking heap of ash and soot. So, for a long time, they were the Barrens. But by the time the losers club had conjoined after a fateful battle that summer, the barrens became home.

It was their play yard, it was their pirate ship or their medieval battlefield. It was somewhere they could disappear to, away from the eyes of their parents. The eyes of the townspeople, of teachers, of anyone who frowned at them for doing shit normal teenagers did. Richie played music too loud and talked too much, Bill had that fucking stutter no one could stand, Bev was the slut no one liked seeing around because they thought she was trying to seduce every man at the tender age of thir-fucking-teen, Ben was obese and sweaty and every time some old hag saw him, they always felt the need to comment about him needing to be  _ healthier _ , Mike was still the town outcast, and Derry was never known for its racial equality, so there were still a lot of troubles Mike faced that the group sympathized with but could never understand, Stan couldn’t do a single thing right by his old man even when the boy tried his hardest, and Eddie… God Help Eddie, his mother was  _ everywhere _ . And where his mother wasn’t, her cronies were, watching Eddie and ready to report back to her the moment he stepped into traffic without checking eight fucking times.

They could come to the barrens whenever they needed to escape. And, while most kids outgrow the place of their childish games, the losers grew more and more fond of the overgrown and lush. Soon, by the time the losers were well into high school, the Barrens was the only place they truly felt safe. Most of them would sneak out late at night, sneak into the barrens with their flashlights and find their way to the clubhouse only to find the light on and another loser was already hiding from the world in its dusty depths. Even years after everything had transpired, there was still such a deep connection that they all knew when they simply needed a  _ loser _ night.

Tonight they had made a little fire. Much to Mike's protests and insistence that this was exactly why the barrens were first called the barrens and did they really need to be repeating history here? Eddie had sided with Mike and pitched only a minor fit to which Stan and Bill compromised and went down to the river to fish a metal barrel they had found on an earlier excursion. Ben provided the kindling, Richie and Bev had the light, both standing on opposite sides of the barrel with those goddamn Winstons hanging between their lips.

“I’m just saying, we don’t know what’s been in there. Like, that could be a toxic waste barrel and now we’re burning it and polluting the air and inhaling cancerous fumes.” Eddie was rambling, arms folded tightly across his chest to shield himself from the biting cold of early fall. “How does a metal barrel end up all the way down here, anyway? It’s not like someone flushed it down the toilet.”

“Coulda been from your mom’s toilet.” Richie piped, smiling around the smoking end of his cigarette as his eyes watched the warmth of the fire flicker across Eddie’s already honey warm skin. “It’s the lube tin she had to buy to keep up with me.”

Eddie scowled, and the group collectively rolled their eyes. “Shut the fuck up, Richie. That’s fucking disgusting. How can anyone use one whole fucking barrel of that stuff?’

Dear sweet Eddie, nearly eighteen and still couldn’t bring himself to say  _ Lube _ .

“Come by my house later and I’ll show you, Eds.” Richie teased with an even wilder grin, his expression almost manic under the lighting effect of the bonfire. 

Laughter echoed through the little alcove as the group started hunting for things to sit on. Mike and Ben moved a log over with only minimal splintering. Bev laid her jacket down on the forest floor and sat on that. Bill joined her on the floor but sat with his back against the log and his eyes tipped up towards the sky. Eddie sat in the very center of the log, fussing over Mike’s hands with the kit he had taken from his backpack- thank  _ god _ he upgraded at the start of high school, Bev would have killed him otherwise. When Mike was splinter-free and slathered with antiseptic, Eddie turned to help Ben, prattling on about the dangers of organic things stuck in the skin and how that could easily lead to sepsis if you miss even one sliver.

For all Richie complained about Eddie being neurotic about this thing, he was certainly paying close attention to the way Eddie was holding Ben’s hand. His own hands slid into the pockets of his jeans, breath clouded in the cold even without his cigarette. Before he could make a comment or try to distract Eddie from his den mother duties, Bev grabbed his arm and pulled him crashing to the ground beside her. Her arm snaked around Richie’s hugging the arm close as her head rested against his shoulder, eyes turned up to watch the stars.

“I guess now’s when someone says something poetic?” Stan commented, sitting beside Mike on the log with his knees together and his hands resting politely on top of them.

Richie lowered his head, seeing the perfect opportunity to distract Ben from how soft Eddie’s hands felt as they patched him up. “Haystack! That’s your cue, dude. Hit us with a couplet, Billy Shakes.”

Embarrassed, Ben ducked his head and coughed to cover the fact he was blushing. Of course, he couldn’t think of anything on the spot, and he was fumbling to try and put something together. Eddie’s and Bev’s look of earnest didn’t help him any. 

Bill saved him, eyes still staring at the dots of white that spackled the inky black above them. “How soon do you think we’ll forget the sun, if we have only the night to cherish?”

Silence settled over the group as all eyes fell to Bill, who was either resolutely ignoring his friend's stares or still too caught up staring at the night sky. All at once, the whole group was reminded just how strongly they felt for Bill, their fearless leader, their protector, the boy willing to give up his life for them. Eddie was the first to look away, Richie following when he noticed Eddie move out of the corner of his eye. All Eddie did was gently pat Ben’s hand and then place it in Ben’s lap before he rubbed the chill from his arms. Were Richie not held down under Bev, he would have gotten up to give Eddie his jacket. Unfortunately, Mike was there to handle the sweet gesture and once again Richie felt his cheeks flush with jealousy as he glared away.

People were caring for Eddie. That was good, that’s how it should be. Just because Richie was too chicken shit to do anything doesn’t mean everyone else had to be.

Mike rested a hand on Bill’s back, the touch warm and gentle like every one of Mike’s touches. “You could write books, Big Bill.”

“Wuh-wuh-wuh-what?” Bill stuttered, finally looking away from the sky to see most of his friends were still staring at him like he was someone famous. The attention turned his ears red and he ducked his head. “S-st-stop looking at m-m-me like that.”

Everyone listened. They always listened to Bill and broke off into their own little conversations. Mike was still trying to convince Bill that he could write books if he wanted to, he had a great imagination. Bill grunts and tells him it’s not imagination, it’s trauma, Mike, and they all have it. Listening in, Stan scoffs and makes his own comment about being the most adjusted of all of them and that begins a roundabout teasing for all of them. Ben and Eddie get to talking about the things Richie and Bev don’t like talking about. College. The future. Leaving Derry and most likely shattering the integrity of the group. That’s not the object of conversation for Ben and Eddie, though, they keep it light and animated, Eddie excited that Ben got into the architecture program, Ben excited Eddie’s going to have a chance to get away from his mother in a year's time. On the other side of the fire, Bev and Richie watch the group chatter, sharing glances when Ben brings up the fact they only have one more year together before…

“Need another smoke?” Bev offers Richie, already feeling the tension in his shoulders with her head still pressed against it. Before Richie can even nod, she has a cigarette out and presses the filter against Richie’s waiting lips. “It’s going to be okay. We’ll keep in contact. I’ve kept in contact, haven’t I?”

Richie just nods, but there’s a reluctance there. He doesn’t believe her. Sitting up, he moves closer to the bin and puts the cigarette in the fire to light it before he takes a long drag. “Just gonna miss this place-”

“Bull shit.”

“Not  _ Derry _ , this place. The clubhouse. The barrens…” Richie murmured, hand on the ground again as he leaned back to watch Eddie through the flickering flames, taking advantage of the few times Eddie wasn’t looking at him to just stare with naked longing. “We’ve had a lot of fun here…”

“What, like when you used to play pirates and got mad at Bill for always being the captain?” Bev teased lightly, gently pinching Richie’s side. Anything to ease that sadness in his eyes, that stress in his jaw. “How many times did you lead a mutiny against him?”

“Every time.”

Bev laughed, loud enough that the others glanced their way, and Richie had to quickly avert his eyes as Eddie turned towards them. “Do you guys remember all the games we used to play down here? Back when it was still cool to play tag and shit?”

“It was never cool to play tag when we were thirteen, that’s why we came here.” Eddie quipped, legs crossing neatly at the knees and Richie was all too aware of how both Stan and Ben seemed to look directly at the shifted position. “I remember when teenage mutant ninja turtles came out and we couldn’t fucking decide who was who.”

There was a disjointed chorus from the group all claiming to be different turtles and, again, conflicting beliefs, but before the conversation could be derailed into an argument, Bev stood up and brushed the dried leaves and dirt from her jeans. “Okay! Okay, I think we should play another game.”

Silence, then, as the boys all looked at her and tried to decide if she was serious or not. They were seniors in high school this year, they didn’t play pretend anymore. Well, Richie did because he was in theater, but he usually got pretty pissed off if the others made jokes about it. A moment passed. Then another. And then finally there’s a chorus of reluctance and shaking heads. Eddie claims he’s not about to go running anywhere in the dark woods with no flashlights. Ben says his mother will kill him if he rips another pair of pants this summer. Stan and Bill just give a resounding no. Mike isn’t sure what the problem is but agrees with everyone else anyway.

“Bev’s right.” Richie chimes in, standing up as well and pinching the cigarette between two fingers to pull it away from his lips as he breathes smoke. “We should play a game.”

“Richie, I’m not fucking running around the woods at night. There’s fucking raccoons and rabies out there, are you fucking stupid?”

“No one is leaving this spot, Eds, shut the fuck up.”

“Eat shit asshole, and don’t call me Eds!” Eddie snapped back, arms folding tightly across his chest and pouting in that prissy way that made Richie wild. 

To his credit, Richie licked his lips but didn’t lose his mind like he usually did. His current task was too important; and, if done right, he’d get something he’s wanted for a long fucking time. Taking another long pull of his cigarette, Richie waited to see if Eddie was going to complain again before he started to circle their makeshift fire pit. “Let’s play a kissing game.”

Unlike when Bev made the original suggestion and they were granted a second of silence, Richie’s offer immediately resulted in an uproar, everyone looking at one another and flushing hot with fresh embarrassment. But Richie only smiled, cigarette hanging between his lips as he slipped his hands into the pocket of his jacket. This response confirmed what he always guessed. Everyone wanted to bone everyone else. Except for Eddie, Richie was stupid as a post when it came to reading Eddie, but he thought maybe the peer pressure would give him a chance. Slowly everyone started to look at one another, the resounding no started to become hesitant Maybe’s and only if he does it too. Just when it seemed everyone was ready to agree, Eddie stood up, looking pointedly at Richie.

“No  _ way _ am I putting my mouth on any of yours, do you have any idea how dirty the human mouth is? We could all have strep throat tomorrow, I have no idea where  _ your _ mouth has been, Richie, and-”

“I’m gonna stop you there,” Richie said, putting his fingers directly on Eddie’s lips and trying to ignore how damn soft they were. “You shared an ice cream with Ben yesterday, stole a sip of Bev’s soda when you thought she wasn’t looking, took a bite out of Big Bill’s half-eaten sandwich, sipped from the same straw in Mike’s coffee, and finished Stan’s crunch bar. As for me?”

He leaned in closer, so close Eddie could smell the smoke on his breath, and for a beat, neither of them seemed to breathe.

“You kissed your mommy goodbye this morning after she swallowed my dick whole last night, Eds, so I mean, really, the only reason you’re saying no is because you’re scared you suck at kissing.”

“I do not!” Eddie shrieked, shoving Richie back and bunching his shoulders up to his bright red ears. 

“Prove it, Eddie Spaghetti.”

“Fine! Fucking fine, okay. Let’s play this stupid game. How do we play, asshole?”

Exalted by his triumph Richie slipped past Eddie to circle the log everyone else was still perched on. “Alright, pussies, listen up. One of us- Eddie- is going to be blindfolded and after we make  _ sure _ they can’t see, the rest of us are gonna take turns kissing them. After each kiss, they get to make a guess and whoever can guess all seven correctly wins.”

“Wins what?” Stan asked, nose wrinkling as he probably considered having to guess his friends based on the way they kissed, but he already said yes and it was unlikely Richie would let him or anyone else back out without great protest. “What’s the incentive to beat this stupid game? What happens if we guess wrong?”

“If you win, you’re the king of the losers. If you guess wrong, you’re a shit friend and you should feel bad.”

“What if I win?” Bev smirked.

“You can be a king. What’s wrong with being a King?”

“A queen has better moves on a chessboard.”

“Bev Marsh, I’m honestly astounded you know anything about chess.”

This garnered Richie several Beeps from his friends on the log and a flipped middle finger from the possible queen/king in question. 

“Alright, alright!” Richie waved his hands before he dropped the cigarette to the ground and toed it out before anyone could yell at him for possibly starting a fire. “Whoever wins can have my first edition Wolverine.”

“I’ll take that,” Eddie said without much consideration, and Bill nodded but the others groaned and loudly voiced their protest.

Frustrated, Richie pushed a hand through the tangle of black atop his head. “Jesus fucking Christ, fine! Anyone else have a better idea? What? You wanna put 10 bucks a piece in a hat and whoever wins gets the pot? What?”

Eddie frowned. “Isn’t that technically prostitution?”

The squabble over a prize lasted a while, with several offered items of value and sentiment being tossed out as viable winnings. In reality, everyone wanted to play the game and didn’t care who would win, they all just wanted to know what it would feel like to kiss the friends they had grown so close to over the last few years. Through near-death and unimaginable danger, all of them would be lying if they didn’t admit to considering kissing the fellow losers on at least one occasion before that night. After some point, they started throwing out terrible options for whoever ended up with the least points. Mowing everyone’s lawn, or having to clean Richie’s room for a week, or buying the losers dinner at the most expensive place in town. Mike was the one to put an end to that, saying negative reinforcement wasn’t a stable way to maintain something that was meant to be fun.

“So, Bev agrees to give her firstborn child to whomever so wins tonight's game of Guess who Kissed Me,” Richie concluded, pushing his glasses up to his forehead so he could dig his fingers into his eyes. He didn’t expect this to take as long as it did, and all he wanted was to have a reason to kiss Eddie without being openly ostracised. “Are we good? Are we agreed? That…  _ That’s  _ the acceptable prize here, really?”

Bev was very adamant about not wanting children. Most of them were. It was a placeholder prize, but it was enough to convince the group of repressed || teenagers that they were doing this for reasons beyond simply wanting to fulfill desires and wants that had laid deep in their minds for several years. Rubbing his hands together, Richie smiled knowingly before he laced his fingers and stepped his pointers towards Eddie.

“You’re up first, Eds.”

“Me! Why Me? Why don’t you go first, it’s your game, asshole!” Eddie turned bright red again, hands squeezed nervously between his knees as he looked around at the others for help. “We- why- Let’s draw straws.”

A resounding chorus of ‘no’s and everyone offered Eddie up as the first. Everyone wanted to kiss him, and at this point, they might as well stop with the pretenses. Choking back a sigh, Eddie rubbed his forehead nervously before he waved the same hand, admitting defeat. Richie pulled the red bandana he carried around with him for aesthetic purposes,- and maybe gang-related reasons, the group was never too sure about it- stepping closer as he folded it to the perfect width to lay over Eddie’s eyes.

Rearing back, Eddie shot a glare. “Where the fuck has that been?”

“Only in your mom’s mouth when I have to gag her to keep her quiet while you’re sleeping, come on, put it on.”

“ _ Richie _ .”

“It’s fucking clean, Eddie, it stays half in my pocket all the fucking time, okay? Stop being a little bitch and let me blindfold you.” There was a minor tussle as Richie leaned forward and Eddie tried rather halfheartedly to get Richie off of him. Beside them, Stan rolled his eyes while Bev smiled, both of them fully aware that this altercation between Eddie and Richie was just a reason for them to touch each other without it being explicitly romantic. One day, they’d hopefully realize what they were doing and just make it official to save the rest of them this second-hand embarrassment.

Eddie sat with his back rigid and chest tight, Richie waving his hand in front of him to make sure Eddie couldn’t see out of the blindfold. Licking his lips, Richie had to fight the urge to proclaim himself as the first test, taking a step back to look at the others. Right… How the fuck did they quietly decide order without Eddie cluing into whoever was getting close?

After hushed bickering and pointing and a hissed ‘Shut up, he can  _ hear _ you, idiot,’ Ben was thrust into the front runner position, shifting awkwardly from one foot to the other. His palms were suddenly sweaty, peeling at the bandages Eddie had put on them earlier as he wiped them on his jeans. Cheeks bright pink, but lost in the orange glow of the fire, Ben looked around at the others as they nodded enthusiastically and gestured for him to get in and make a move before Eddie panicked and pulled the blindfold off.

“Round one, Eds, coming in.” Richie chimed from the side, hands sliding into the pockets of his jacket, the fire obscuring the look of enraged jealousy in his eyes as Haystack started to lean in closer.

Nervous as he was, Eddie was equally excited. He had never been kissed, and he was worried he did suck. But thinking about it, there were probably only two others in the whole friend group who had a first kiss. Or… Maybe half. It didn’t matter; Eddie at least knew that  _ maybe _ Stan and Mike never kissed before and this will probably be their first too.

The same thought seemed to hit Richie at that moment because his shoulders suddenly went slack as Ben was only inches from Eddie’s face and he moved forward with a loud enough crackle of dead leaves that forced everyone to look at him. There was no fucking way he could let  _ anyone _ else but him be Eddie’s first kiss. “Uh! Hold on, hold on, wait, had a thought, let’s just, uhm. All have a stick of gum so Eddie can’t tell based on taste, okay? He’s hyper-observant, we don’t want to give him an edge.”

Shit. Eddie pouted as he heard whoever was about to kiss move away towards Richie. The taste of smoke was how Eddie planned on identifying either Bev or Richie, and Richie had a little bit of stubble because he shaves every Wednesday… Not that. Eddie paid that much attention to Richie’s grooming habits or whatever. Straining, he could hear a hushed argument a few paces away, but the voices were too low to be able to tell apart or make out words. Then footsteps returning to take their place in front of him.

Those nerves returned as Eddie tipped his head back as if to look up at whoever was standing there, the hair on the back of his neck standing on edge with anticipation as he could feel the warmth of the other person drawing closer to him. A foot, inches, a breath. Eddie could feel the breath on his face, warm and just as nervous as he was but it sent a whole new wave of heat from the top of Eddie’s head all the way to the curl of his toes. He only had a moment to breathe in to try and steady himself before lips were touching him and he made a soft sound of surprise before his whole body sank into the feel of it.

Hands set on either side of Eddie’s lap as the person kissing him kept their balance during the kiss. So they were tall. Which counted Bill and Bev out. Fingers twitching in his lap, Eddie fought the urge to reach out and grab this person's arm, wondering if the muscle or the jacket would give them away, but he kept his hands neatly in his lap, sinking deeper into the kiss to find the answer. It was warm, more than just the feel of his lips, but there was something so soft and innocent about the simple touch of their lips together. Swallowing a quiet sound, Eddie tipped his head further up as if to help the angle, but he just wanted to continue this kiss. It felt right. Above him, whoever was kissing him seemed just as lost in the feel because soon hands were cupping Eddie’s jaw and Eddie could feel fingerless gloves. Rings.

_ Richie _ . Richie was his first fucking kiss. With a soft gasp, Eddie pulled back, lips hanging open slightly as his entire face flushed red with need and want. Tonguing the taste of Richie on his lips once more, Eddie tried to steady his breath, hands shaking in his lap to keep them from grabbing the front of Richie’s jacket to pull him back into the kiss they had both been dreaming of for years.

“You got a guess, Eddie?” Bev asked gently, and Eddie had to gasp again. One damn kiss and he was already losing his mind.

“Yeah… Uhm, yes. It’s Richie.”

Around him, the losers cheered and gave Richie the perfect cover to duck his head as if in defeat but he was trying to recover from fulfilling what felt like a lifelong dream. Eddie’s lips had been everything he had imagined and more and  _ shit _ , how was he ever going to live without them now? This might have been a mistake.

“L-Lucky guess.” Richie coughed out, standing erect and forcing his hands into his jacket or he’d be grabbing Eddie’s face again. A beat and Richie cursed. “It’s because you felt my gloves. Fucker! That’s cheating!”

“I can’t stop you from touching me! I can’t see; That was your stupid choice!”

“One point for Eddie.” Stan drawled, looking around at the others. “Who goes next, then?”

Still shaking, Richie stepped away and looked over the group. He tapped Ben’s arm and nodded for him to move in and go for it again now that he wasn’t going to steal Eddie’s first kiss from him. Standing to the side of the group again, Richie tugged a hand free to draw his thumb against his lower lip, already reminiscing in that fleeting moment of bliss. “Ready Eds?”

Nodding his confirmation, Eddie settled his hands in his lap again, head tipped up slightly again. It didn’t help his mind kept straying to Richie, wishing he could take this blindfold off and kiss him again. Wondering if Richie would have kissed him again if he purposely guessed wrong. Again he felt the electricity of someone leaning closer and he drew in a soft breath as he waited for the second kiss of his life.

This kiss was sweet and gentle. Tentative, shy, and chaste. Eddie thought it might be Stan based on that but there was something more. A yearning sadness behind it, yet he was still willing to give and give and give to Eddie. To anyone. It was missing that immediate passion Richie’s kiss had given him, but it didn’t make it any less special. There was sincerity behind it. It reminded him of both Mike and Ben.

With a soft noise, Eddie pulled back and recaught his breath. How could he choose, he didn’t pick up anything else besides how the kiss made him feel. “Okay… uhm. Mike…?”

Laughter, and Eddie knew instantly he was wrong, his ears turning red with embarrassment at his failure.

“Ben! It’s Ben, then!”

There was laughter still, but laced with impressed ‘oohs’, and Ben laughed shyly as well, hand up to awkwardly rest on Eddie’s shoulder before he thought better of it and kept them to himself instead. “It was me.”

“Still not a point. You only have one.” Richie wasn’t sure why he found it comforting that Eddie had only been able to guess him. He hoped he lost the other four for entirely selfish reasons, convincing himself that maybe Eddie knew it was Richie before he touched him. Maybe they were connected on a level no one else could touch.

Eddie fidgeted again, hands rubbing his legs nervously as the losers pointed at each other to decide who would go next. Soon Eddie heard the crunching of leaves as Ben walked away and someone came to take his place. He tried to decide who it could be based on that alone but it was difficult to pinpoint exactly. A pair of hands touched Eddie's legs as a warning they were there before they leaned in and gently touched lips to Eddies.

Gentle. Not so much timid as it was resigned. Chaste and concise and maybe a little stiff. But his- Eddie determined it wasn't Beverly- hands were warm… Eddie knew who it was almost instantly, and he smiled against the kiss before pulling back. "Hi, Stan."

"That was incredibly sure." Stan drawled, hands sliding to gently brush back Eddie's hair. "I mean, you're correct, but I'm curious about your thought process."

Richie's face was like thunder, jealous eyes luckily hidden behind the reflection of fire in his glasses. He'd need another cigarette before all of this was done. "Hey, hey, hey! This isn't English Class, Stan, he doesn't need to explain his answer. There is no penalty for guessing."

"It wasn't a guess." Eddie was still smiling. He liked Stan's kiss more than expected, much to Richie's barely contained chagrin. "Two points. Next?"

"You're getting a little too excited about this, Eds," Richie muttered, hands once again in his pockets.

A short shrug, Eddie's cheeks turning pink even in the glow of the fire. "I like kissing…"

"Alright, Alright! Who's next." Richie looked around, expression soured now that Eddie had guessed someone who didn't have any dead giveaways like gloves or rings. He gave a nod to the next loser, hoping rather foolishly that Eddie wouldn't be able to guess this due to complete ineptitude.

His next kiss was soft. Not only in execution but the physical feel of the lips was soft too. They tasted of cherries and cigarettes and Eddie barely needed five seconds before he pulled back slightly. "Bev!"

"How the fuck do you know what it's like to kiss a girl?" Richie was almost beside himself. This game  _ sucked _ .

"Three points, don't be jealous!"

The Trashmouth with the stupid ideas was insanely jealous and he jerked his hand out of his pocket to pick the next contestant. Everyone took notice of Richie's growing agitation, especially when Richie didn't use humor to cover it up. This was upsetting him. Mike tried to go to him and quietly call off the game but Richie just shook his head and snapped at him not to pussy out.

Waiting for the next kiss, Eddie had his hands pressed between his knees again, shoulders slumped forward and lips protruding in an impatient pout. He didn't have to wait much longer, at least, because the next contestant was in front of him. Another pair of warm hands on Eddie's jeans. He couldn't feel much other detail, because he would have been able to guess between Mike and Bill based on calluses on their hands.

Lips touched his in a brazen and headstrong kiss. Someone who knew what they were doing, someone who  _ knew _ how to be tender and sweet without overdoing it. It was the kind of kiss Eddie expected of a prince, and Eddie let himself test the kiss a little longer even though he was certain he knew who it was.

"Mike. That time it was Mike." Eddie whispered, and his heart was pounding so loud he was sure all the losers could hear it.

Richie had to physically walk away from the group. Looking between one another, it was Beverly who got up and trotted after him, hand gentle on his back. Her tone was even gentler somehow as Richie stood shrouded by the darkness of the night. It was easier to hide his expression here. No one could see him near tears over something his stupid self suggested.

"I'm good. I'm fine, I'll be fine." He lied, clearing his throat as he looked in Bev's general direction. "I'll be fine…"

"Tell him, Richie," Bev told him, hand rubbing up and down his back to try her best to soothe him. She could feel him shaking as he fought back sobs. "Richie, honey. Come here."

She hugged him, then, chin tucked atop Richie's shoulder as she held him tight with one arm, the other still rubbing a line up and down his back. He remained tense for another beat before his breath left him in a shudder and he rested back against Bev's embrace. "I… I don't… I don't know, I-"

"Richie, Bill is offering you his turn," Stan said as he approached, tone bored with this unnecessary back and forth when the truth was so painstakingly obvious, even to Bill. When Richie turned, mouth open to argue he couldn't, Stan raised a hand to stop him. "Eddie would guess Bill correctly, anyway. It's not a fair guess, so the final kiss should always be random. If we're still keeping up these pretenses, that is."

Sniffling, Richie rubbed his nose on the shoulder of his jacket before he took Bev's hand to kiss her wrist in a silent thank you. Even if the game was a big facade to everyone, Stan's offer made sense. Richie might not get the courage to tell Eddie anything, but if he could have one last chance to kiss him, he should take it. The other three returned to the others, where Stan explained that it wouldn't be fair to have Bill kiss Eddie since Eddie could guess him by process of elimination. Eddie made another whine of protest but was inevitably outvoted by the rest.

Now everyone looked at Richie, giving him the first and last kiss. Richie might have hated all eyes on him but all he could think about was how soft Eddie's lips had felt on his. All he wanted was to taste them once more, he didn't care who saw. Drawing closer, Richie knelt in front of Eddie, taking in his face, counting the freckles that poked out from under his blindfold. Just memorizing this moment because Richie was certain his life would never get better than this. With a soft breath in, Richie closed the distance, kissing Eddie for the second time that night.

The sound Eddie made was both soft and surprised like he recognized the kiss. It only took until that sound died in his throat for him to sink into the kiss, lips parting under Richie's to deepen the kiss. He was only vaguely aware of people moving around him, of the warmth of a body behind him blocking the wind. Then Eddie felt the blindfold being untied and pulled from his eyes and Eddie immediately saw Richie.

His glasses were pushed into his hair, forcing the waves and curls to stand at odd angles; his eyes were closed as he savored the moment, probably for the better because he would definitely pull away if he knew Eddie could see him. But he wouldn't get the chance because Eddie wrapped his hands behind Richie's neck, pulling him closer as their tongues rolled over one another. The losers cheered, both parts happy for them and relieved they could all move forward without the unbearable tension between Eddie and Richie.

Pulling away when his friends started cheering, Richie clumsily reached for his glasses to pull them down to his eyes so he could see Eddie looking up at him, thin lips swollen from the barrage of kisses he had received from the lot of them. Richie looked panicked, and would have danced away if Eddie didn't still have his hands behind his head, holding them together. "H-hey, Eds."

"Don't call me Eds."

"Kiss me like that again and I'll hold off for, like, an hour." He allowed, and Eddie tugged Richie in for another kiss, this one sweet as the two couldn't stop smiling against the other’s lips. When he finally pulled away, he settled on the log beside Eddie, lanky arms wrapping around him to pull him closer.

Eddie looked at the others. "Who's next?"

Everyone gave an excuse as they stood, stretching and gathering belonging to make the trek back home.  _ It's late out, I have deliveries tomorrow morning, my mom will kill me if I miss curfew, they're playing my favorite movie on tv soon _ . Eddie stared at all of them, open-mouthed and disappointed.

"That's not fair! I had to kiss everyone! You guys can't chicken out now!"'

"So you win, you get Bev's firstborn son." Richie was rubbing his forehead against Eddie's shoulder, still trying to believe what was happening. Eddie kissed him back. Eddie liked him. Maybe? Richie didn’t want to stop and think too far into it lest he ruins whatever weird thing they had right now because at least they  _ had _ a weird thing. “Come on, I’ll walk you home.”

Continuing to grumble about how he didn’t even want Bev’s firstborn son, Eddie stood and wiped his mouth before reaching out to take Richie’s gloved hand without being prompted. For a boy on the verge of having a complete mental breakdown, Richie was on cloud nine as he looked down at Eddie’s hand in his. How was this real? How could all of his dreams come true out of a stupid half-assed idea he never even thought would work?

Mike and Ben safely put the fire out while Bill and Bev held the flashlights so they could find their way out of the sudden inky blackness, Bev shining a light on Eddie and Richie as Stan told them to behave; just because the lights were out didn’t mean they couldn’t  _ hear _ the two of them. Then they started to leave as a group, Eddie and Richie walking side by side as they always did, but the difference now was their fingers were laced together, and the way they bumped shoulders meant more than just friendship.

Richie didn’t want to leave the barrens. He’d choose to stay here by the fire with Eddie in his arms, kissing each other until the world ended for all he cared.

But  **_the Barrens weren't Never-Never Land and they couldn't be the Wild Boys for more than a few hours at a stretch_ ** .


End file.
